Houston Astros: Three guys that need extra playing time down the stretch

The Houston Astros are in the middle of a battle for the AL West pennant. In order to ensure a division title, these three guys need to get some extra playing time. Let’s take a look.

The Houston Astros are duking it out with the Oakland Athletics for the title of the AL West division champs. Because of this, it appears that the Astros are worse off than they were last year in 2017. But, prior to last night’s game, the Astros actually had the same record as last year, 86-53.

So, this has everything to do with how good the A’s have been and nothing to do with the Astros being “worse” than last year. At this point last year, the Astros had a 13.5 game lead in the division, this year they only have a 3.5 game lead.

There will be no coasting into the playoffs this year. The Houston Astros are going to have to fight tooth and nail to win the division and get into a playoff series. The worst case scenario for the Astros, right now, is to make the playoffs but in a wild card spot. Anything can happen in a one-game playoff and the Astros don’t want to fall victim to it.

Fortunately, the Astros have been playing excellent baseball as of late. This excellent play has resulted in wins a ton of fun. Alex Bregman has been playing out of his mind and this has resulted in elaborate home run celebrate the dugouts. Bregman is seeking to be the first Astro with 30 homers and 100 RBIs in about a decade.

However, it all hasn’t been all roses as Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve are both in slumps. Correa’s has been about a month long as he hasn’t quite been about to shake the rust off. Altuve’s slump has been much shorter but, the Astros need their MVP to heat up.

That being said, there are some players who have been stepping up when other guys have been faltering. Let’s take a look at three guys who need as much playing time as they can get during this playoff push.